A History of Wisconsin Immigrants
Grant Funding Available
Wisconsin Humanities administers the only grant program in the state devoted to the public humanities. Throughout the state, we help bring communities together by supporting projects in schools, libraries, museums, churches, historical societies, colleges and civic groups.
A list of recently funded projects will give you a sense of the kinds of programs the WH supports. In general, projects use humanities expertise to support community engagement and discussion. Programs may not advocate for particular political positions, but may speak directly to current concerns, such as immigration.
WH staff are available to discuss ideas and offer guidance. Learn more about the WH grant program at www.wisconsinhumanities.org/grants.
Fast Facts
- Less than 5% of the people living in Wisconsin today were born in other countries (American Immigration Council)
- Today’s immigrants (280,000 people out of Wisconsin’s population of 5.84 million) come from over 100 countries (U.S. Census Bureau).
- In addition, 6.6% of people in Wisconsin are native-born Americans with at least one immigrant parent (data from 2016).
- In 2014, immigrant families in Wisconsin had $6.6 billion in spending power and paid $822 million in state and local taxes (New American Economy).
- Immigrant workers made up 5.9% of the Wisconsin labor force in 2015. Immigrants filled nearly a quarter of the positions in Wisconsin’s farming, fishing, and forestry industries (American Immigration Council).
- Download a PDF of the Fact Panel from the exhibit here.
Books about Immigration
- Danes in Wisconsin: Revised and Expanded Edition by Frederick Hale (Wisconsin Historical Society Press)
- Finns in Wisconsin: Revised and Expanded Edition by Mark Knipping (Wisconsin Historical Society Press)
- Germans in Wisconsin: Revised and Expanded Edition by Richard H. Zeitlin (Wisconsin Historical Society Press)
- Irish in Wisconsin by David G. Holmes (Wisconsin Historical Society Press)
- Jews in Wisconsin by Sheila Terman Cohen (Wisconsin Historical Society Press)
- Mexicans in Wisconsin by Sergio Gonzalez (Wisconsin Historical Society Press)
- Norwegians in Wisconsin: Revised and Expanded Edition by Richard J. Fapso (Wisconsin Historical Society Press)
- Poles in Wisconsin by Susan Gibson Mikoś (Wisconsin Historical Society Press)
- Swedes in Wisconsin: Revised and Expanded Edition by Frederick Hale (Wisconsin Historical Society Press)
- Swiss in Wisconsin: Revised and Expanded Edition by Frederick Hale (Wisconsin Historical Society Press)
- Wisconsin Land and Life by Robert C. Ostergren and Thomas R. Vale (UW Press)
- Wisconsin Talk: Linguistic Diversity in the Badger State Edited by Thomas Purnell, Eric Raimy, and Joseph Salmons (UW Press)
